4th January 2010
Biocontrol Limited, a Nottingham-based business that pitched at the Connect Midlands Investment Conference (CMIC) in November 2009, has received funding of £200,000 as it prepares for the final round of financing to take its products to market, with the first product line already through advanced clinical trials.
The funding, which comes from a private investor, will help to support the business, enabling it to work at “full speed” in the run up to the final founding round early in 2010.
Based at BioCity, Biocontrol is working to develop safe, specific, effective and adaptable biological agents, targeted at markets where current chemical drugs are failing or ineffective. Biocontrol’s first product, BioPhage-PA, targets infections of body surfaces caused by Peudomonas aeruginosa, a highly antibiotic-resistant Gram negative pathogen. The follow-up product, BioPhage-PR, targets such infections of the cystic fibrosis lung.
Doctor David Harper, Chief Scientific Officer of Biocontrol Limited explains;
“Bacteriophages (eaters of bacteria) are the biological answer to antibiotic resistance and are naturally occurring viruses that infect bacteria. The virus then binds to the bacterial surface and it’s DNA enters into the host bacterial cell.
Lytic bacteriophages of the type used for therapeutic approaches kill their target rapidly. Once the bacteriophage has infected the host cell,, a typical lytic bacteriophage will produce 100-300 new bacteriophages from an infected bacterial cell in a matter of hours. These can then go on to infect and destroy a whole new generation of the target bacteria. This exponential replication only stops when the bacteriophages run out of target bacteria, then, they cannot grow any more. Without their target, they are simply small lumps of protein, to be removed by the normal clearance processes of the body.”
“We first presented to Connect Midlands in 2001 and with our move back into the Midlands region in 2008 we were delighted to have the opportunity to present at the Connect Midlands Investment Conference in November 2009. We were of course very please to obtain funding so soon after the conference, and do feel that this reflects the high calibre of investors at such events.”
Paul Jenkinson, Regional Manager of Connect Midlands said;
“Having worked with Biocontrol since 2001, we’re delighted to see the company’s effort bear fruit, particularly in such a challenging sector. We wish the team every success as they continue to forge forwards.”